Transportation bond must be on fall ballot

As the General Assembly considers which bond measures to place on the ballot in the fall, it is important to include the $40 million bond for a new transportation center/RIPTA bus hub at Providence’s Amtrak station. More

You can purchase access to thissingle article, if you prefer.Click here to continue.

Sign up to receive Providence Business News' newsletters and breaking news alerts.

PBN Editorial

Transportation bond must be on fall ballot

Posted:
Saturday, June 7, 2014 12:05 am

As the General Assembly considers which bond measures to place on the ballot in the fall, it is important to include the $40 million bond for a new transportation center/RIPTA bus hub at Providence’s Amtrak station.

The benefits are numerous, and tangible.

• By moving downtown’s major bus hub out of Kennedy Plaza, that public space can now become a showcase in the center of the capital, as it is meant to be.

• Improved public transit increases both the number of residents and the number of jobs.

• Moving the bus hub out of Kennedy Plaza, where capacity is constrained even now, will allow RIPTA ridership to continue its growth pattern.

• And by having the new hub at one of the nation’s busiest train stations (14th busiest nationwide in the Amtrak station), intermodal connections will be smoother and more robust.

Investment in infrastructure can be costly, but they always pay dividends. But in this case, those dividends likely to be realized are far more than having an easier time riding a bus or train to work. •

Get the most up-to-date data on the Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts business community from the PBN List Center. Download and purchase PBN Lists as well as the complete Book of Lists in Excel format.